Sevendust - Alpha [2007] [Rock] ##VERIFIED##
Basa Uram
Alpha is the sixth studio album by American rock band Sevendust. The album was released on March 6, 2007. It is the band's second album featuring Sonny Mayo on rhythm guitar and the first with him as part of the writing process. Alpha is also the first album by the band to be released under the Warner-affiliated Asylum Records, making Sevendust the first metal/rock band on that label (the rest being hip-hop and rap artists). The tracks "Driven" and "Feed" were featured on the video game, WWE Smackdown vs Raw 2008.
They're a local band to me, so for a while in middle school and early high school, Reveille was all a lot of the rock-fans talked about. That, and Laced is an alright album. Once they started doing party music (ie. their second album) they were fucked. It didn't help that nu-metal and rap/rock were on the way out when they became "popular," either, and add that to the band fighting amongst themselves and Drew Simolldares' horrible lyrics and non-existant rapping skills, yeah.
I really don't see the connection between Stuck Mojo and Sevendust. Except of course the obvious black lead singer (also see Sepultura), otherwise the sounds are worlds apart. Especially since Stuck Mojo is more of a Public Enemy/Anthrax sound with a lyricist over rock music.
As for the Mojo/Sevendust similarities, listen to Mojo's Pigwalk and then Sevendust's s/t. Musically, very similar, but I'm not really gonna go the whole "THEY FUCKING RIPPED 'EM OFF" route 100%. Would've been nice for Sevendust to at least give Mojo a shout-out now and then, considering Mojo was owning the ATL hard rock/metal scene for a few years before Sevendust meant shit.
"It's a very strange feeling to have a kid come up to me and say" that Sevendust was "my first show; I was 16 or even younger. They make me feel old now when they say that. But to still be rocking with us this many years later and bringing their kids and stuff, it's crazy."
For Sevendust, which formed in 1995 in Atlanta, a career that had started with considerable promise -- the band's second CD, "Home," included two popular mainstream rock tracks, "B----" and "Back" and seemed to have the band poised for a commercial breakthrough -- stalled out just a few years later.
SEVENDUST represents in many ways a quintessential blue-collar heavy rock band: the group releases albums regularly, then goes and tours the shit out of them. No matter what one may think of the band's music, there's no question that SEVENDUST is one of the tightest, punchiest bands on the metal circuit, with the melodic range of vocalist Lajon Witherspoon also one of the group's secret weapons.
The band -- comprising frontman Witherspoon, John Connolly (guitar), Clint Lowery (guitar), Vince Hornsby (bass), and Morgan Rose (drums) -- first appeared in 1995 as Crawlspace, releasing the single "My Ruin" on the Mortal Kombat: More Kombat soundtrack. Shortly thereafter, the group changed their name to Sevendust and released a 1997 self-titled debut, home to the breakthrough singles "Black" and "Bitch." Two years later, they issued the gold-selling sophomore set Home (TVT), which featured their mainstream rock hit "Denial." As the band's audience grew, they played over 800 shows alongside such groups as Korn, Godsmack, Disturbed, and Metallica, even making an appearance at Woodstock '99. Their angst-ridden third album, the aptly titled Animosity, appeared in fall 2001 and landed in the Top 30 on the Billboard 200. Seasons followed in 2003, their highest-charting album to date and last with TVT.
In late December 2004, word surfaced that Lowery had left the band, and those rumors proved true the following February when Sevendust announced ex-Snot guitarist Sonny Mayo as Lowery's replacement. (Lowery, a co-founder of Sevendust, eventually surfaced in the hard rock supergroup Dark New Day.) Sevendust's fifth album and first self-produced effort, Next, appeared in October 2005 on Winedark Records. The record failed to sell as much as its predecessors, and Sevendust later signed to Asylum Records, issuing Alpha in March 2007. Alpha fared better than Next, climbing to number 14 on the Billboard charts and paving the way for the band's seventh effort. Chapter VII: Hope and Sorrow arrived a year later and featured appearances by Chris Daughtry, Myles Kennedy, and Mark Tremonti.
At this time, the band parted ways with Mayo, welcoming Lowery back to Sevendust and restoring their original lineup. The reunited crew followed with Cold Day Memory in 2010. Landing just outside the Top Ten, it was their highest-charting set to date, yielding the trio of mainstream rock hits "Unraveling," "Forever," and "Last Breath." Their ninth album, Black Out the Sun, arrived in 2013, topping the hard rock chart.
Over the years, Sevendust have continued to experiment with their sound, incorporating elements of alternative rock and even electronic music into their music. Their most recent album, Blood & Stone, was released in 2020 and showcased the band's ability to create complex and nuanced music that defies easy categorization.
Despite some lineup changes over the years, Sevendust have remained a constant presence in the world of rock music. They have toured extensively, sharing the stage with bands like Metallica and Korn, and have continued to release critically acclaimed albums that push the boundaries of the genre.
Sevendust's music has resonated with fans worldwide, and their influence can be heard in the work of countless other bands in the alternative metal and hard rock genres. With their powerful guitar riffs and soulful vocals, Sevendust have established themselves as one of the most important bands in the world of rock music.
Nell'ottobre del 2009 i Sevendust si recano a Chicago e sotto la guida di Johnny K[38][39] (già all'attivo con band come Disturbed, Staind, Finger Eleven e 3 Doors Down) registrano il loro ottavo album in studio, intitolato Cold Day Memory. Il 22 dicembre 2009 venne annunciato che le riprese in studio erano state completate e che l'album sarebbe stato distribuito nell'aprile del 2010, dato che tra dicembre e gennaio si sarebbero impegnati in concerti dal vivo. Il 6 febbraio 2010 la band pubblica sul suo sito ufficiale la canzone Forever Dead e dopo circa un mese viene pubblicata su iTunes la canzone Unraveling.[40] Il 17 marzo viene distribuita per radio la canzone Last Breath e il giorno seguente Confessions (Without Faith) e The End Is Coming. Il 20 aprile 2010 viene pubblicato Cold Day Memory, un album di 12 canzoni che con il ritorno di Clint Lowery ripristina la formazione originale che non si vedeva dal 2003 ai tempi di Seasons. Il primo singolo estratto è Unraveling che si piazza al posto 29 tra le canzoni rock, mentre il CD si inserisce al 12º posto nella Billboard 200[5]. Gli altri due singoli estratti dall'album sono Forever Dead e Last Breath. Nell'estate del 2010 i Sevendust si esibiscono al Rock on the Range[41] e al Carnival of Madness Tour insieme a Chevelle, Shinedown, Puddle of Mudd e 10 Years.[42] Il 16 settembre viene girato il video di Falcons on Top, la sigla ufficiale della squadra di football di Atlanta, gli Atlanta Falcons.[43][44][45] Nel novembre 2010 i Sevendust si esibiscono dal vivo insieme a Korn, Disturbed e In This Moment nel tour Music as a Weapon.[46][47] Tra febbraio e marzo 2011 i Sevendust si esibiscono al Soundwave Festival in Australia.[48] Il gruppo ha anche pubblicato una nuova versione del loro primo album omonimo, Sevendust: Definitive Edition, con cinque nuove canzoni. Il 16 ottobre 2011 suonano al 48 Hours Festival di Las Vegas.[49][50]
Influenzati dai Metallica, Living Colour, Twisted Sister, Faith No More, Pantera, Van Halen e Nine Inch Nails, i Sevendust sono classificati come una band heavy metal, hard rock, alternative metal, industrial metal e nu metal. Quando è stato chiesto di definire il genere della propria band, John Connolly ha risposto così: Non lo so. Ho cercato di capirlo. Ma non lo so. Per cinque minuti la gente ci definì progressive, e poi nu metal, poi, improvvisamente stavamo suonando alternative metal. Suoniamo una sorta di musica pesante, con un po' di rock e un po' di metal.[70]
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